Groundskeeping

Everyone generally knows about the Parable of the Sower that Jesus told in Matthew 13 and Luke 8. In this story, Jesus tells us of someone sowing seed and this seed falling on four types of ground: ground that didn't receive seed at all, stony/hard ground, ground overgrown with weeds and thorns, and lastly, good ground. Each of these is representative of the ways in which people receive the "seed" of God's word, but there is a key element to this entire progression that needs to be considered: each type of ground is in the condition it is in due to the preparation, or a lack thereof. This leads us to take a deeper look at our duty in this process.

As we ponder this topic, it's quite easy to look at this parable from the perspective that says that the ground is just the way it is by default. This viewpoint springs up so naturally given the absence of personal responsibility which has become so characteristic of our society. The reality though is that the ground gets into the condition it is in due to a host of factors: attention, care, neglect, the elements, etc. What we must realize is that these factors translate into human terms as well because the ground which Jesus was really concerned with was that of the hearts of mankind. We too can become ground upon which seed will only fall by the wayside if we don't have a heart to receive it. If we have a heart which is hardened, rigid and stuck in our way of doing things or we simply choose not receive all of what God's word has to say, we will be just like the stony ground upon which seed springs up quickly, but abruptly dies out due to a lack of depth. When we allow the cares of life to come in, whether they seem good or bad to us, they will choke out the growth of God's "good seed" in our hearts. Finally though, the desire of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit for us is that we are good ground which has been prepared to receive, so that when the seed is planted it bears a good harvest which remains.

The question today is, are you keeping the ground of your heart or are you allowing it to fall into disrepair? The parable of the sower undoubtedly gives us an illustration that shows the significance of the posture of our hearts as we receive the word of God. His word is always good seed, therefore the burden lies upon the one who is charged with keeping the ground to have it prepared and ready to receive the seed. With this in mind, make the choice to position yourself and deal with the issues of life in such a way that your heart is always ready to take in the good seed of God's word with a "noble and good heart" (Luke 8:15) and in turn bear fruit that remains. Keep the ground well so that the good fruit you bear will be evident and those around you will be pointed to Father God, the ultimate seed sower.

Presence before Production

Last weekend I had the opportunity to hear a very powerful message from a fellow worship leader and musician. Of the many profound statements he made, the one that stood out to me the most was that we must be presence-driven and not production-driven. The presence that he was referring to of course was the presence of God. Being a director of a worship and arts ministry, this particular statement resounded loudly in my heart and mind and caused me to take a deeper look at how we approach the place of corporate worship.

So many times in our results-driven, instant-gratification society, we want to see things happen. Not only that, but we want to see things happen right now. That mindset has caused us to often times judge the place of corporate worship from a wrong perspective. If the music is played perfectly, if the singers are right on, if the songs are good, if everyone is really energetic, THEN worship was good. Our thought many times is, 'Did everything go well?' and not, 'Were we in His presence?' This is not the attitude which should accompany worship offered to the Ruler of all Creation.

As we look into the word of God, a great example of the type of attitude we should have toward worship is found in Exodus 33. God called Moses to lead the children of Israel into the land He was giving them, but their prior disobedience in creating the golden calf upon which to focus their worship caused God to respond with the following in verse 3 "... for I will not go up in your midst, lest I consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people." They had desired to SEE something - a product/result - so they created an idol upon which to focus their worship. We too can make this mistake if we focus our worship on the 'products' of the day: good songs, flawless music, great crowd response, good lighting, etc. Instead, let us choose the heart Moses expressed in verse 15: , "If Your Presence does not go [with us], do not bring us up from here." In the midst of an intense discussion with the Lord, Moses' cry was not, "Will you do it Lord? Will You help us get there?" He was in total opposition to being production-oriented. His simple plea was that if the children of Israel would not be privileged to have the accompaniment of Father God's holy presence, then there was no purpose in even taking the journey. No sense in having what would seem to others to be wonderful benefits, without the giver of those benefits. No point in having a 'flawless' worship service, if the presence of the Lord is not there.

Upon repenting of our sin to follow the ways of Father God, our immediate response should be worship - which is truly summed up as a recognition of who He is, His authority and subsequently realizing that our obedience to Him is what's required. That is the place of truly abiding in His presence. The power of corporate worship is in a group of people recognizing the aforementioned points, declaring them, and most importantly living them. Our enjoyment or use of good music is only a part of this equation when we realize that in light of His holiness, we offer ALL that we are to honor Him (Romans 12:1). We must be focused on what it is to abide in His presence and not just have a good production - whatever that may entail.

Today and everyday, our desire must be to never get so overwhelmed with producing good results that we leave God's presence behind. Now certainly, we must prepare and be competent so that what we do is excellent and not a distraction to ourselves and others, but never to the point that our preparation and competence become our golden calf so to speak. We must be stripped of any desire to put anything above the Father so that He has the place He deserves in our lives: #1. In that place, our preparation and competence become acts of worship as we abide in His presence. Day by day, let us press on to embrace a life where His presence is far above anything else. Production is good in many areas, but let's never let it supersede the powerful principle of abiding in Him. Simply stated: let's always keep presence before production.